Monrovia, Liberia; September 17, 2025 – The Head of the Independent Information Commission says the passage of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Law by the Government of Liberia with support from CSOs and Partners, affirmed Liberia’s commitments to upholding Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Chapter 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and Article 15c of the 1986 Constitution of Liberia, which states: “In pursuance of this right, there shall be no limitation on the public right to be informed about the government and its functionaries.”
Commissioner Joash T. Hodges says the passage of the FOI Law is a milestone accomplishment that demonstrates the Government of Liberia’s commitment to participatory democracy, accountability, and transparency through public access to information.
He spoke on Tuesday, September 16, at the celebration of the 15th anniversary of the signing of the Act establishing Freedom of Information in Liberia.
On September 16, 2010, the Government of Liberia passed the Freedom of Information Law, establishing the Independent Information Commission (IIC) as the statutory body responsible for its implementation.
“Ladies and Gentlemen of the press, when we took over in June 2024, we met a declining FOI regime, affecting Liberia’s commitment to upholding the promise of openness in governance as the law espouses. This declining state was reflected in the IIC FOI audit of Ministries and Agencies conducted between October 2nd and November 15th, 2025”, Commissioner Hodges recounts.
According to him, the audit’s findings show that most Ministries, Agencies, and Commissions (MACs) failed to take the necessary actions required under the provisions of the FOI Act to ensure full compliance, which guarantees public access to government-held information.
He explains that during the audit, 103 MACs were assessed, and of this number, only 25 had appointed Public Information Officers with notice to the IIC, “Our audit also shows that of the 103 MACs assessed, 82 have Functional Websites, while 32 published the entities’ Act,1 Published its Budget (MFDP), one has established the Internal Information Request Review Body (MICAT) and only 1 (MICAT) filed an FOI Activities Report to the IIC.
He reveals that critical to these audit findings are that 78 MACs have not officially appointed Public Information Officers, and 103 MACs have no established Internal Information Request-Review Body, noting that the lack of these very important feedback mechanisms that are pivotal in facilitating public access to information undermines the provision of information, which effectively denies the public to government information.
However, Commissioner Hodges discloses that on March 21, 2025, the IIC embarked on an intensive and aggressive Freedom of Information awareness, compliance, and record management training to address these major gaps impeding the implementation of the FOI Laws of Liberia, targeting a total of 28 government institutions.
Beneficiaries from those institutions included 384 senior officials and employees of government, particularly, departmental and sectional heads of ministries, agencies, public corporations, bureaus, and security institutions.
Meanwhile, speaking at the celebration, Jeffrey N. Yates, Executive Director of the Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) and Head of Secretariat, underscored the importance of information in the extractive sector and announced a plan to partner with the Independent Information Commission to enhance public access to information in the sector.
For his part, Julius Konobah, President of the Press Union of Liberia, called for increased budgetary support to the IIC and encouraged journalists to utilize the FOI Law in their quest for credible information.
The IIC is currently working with the Center for Transparency and Accountability in Liberia (CENTEL) to hold additional training next Tuesday, September 23, 2025, for the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Ministry of Labor, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Commerce and Industry and other institutions at the Ministerial Complex, Commissioner Hodges disclosed, adding “The purposes of these trainings are to enhance and strengthen the capacity of personnel of public bodies to ensure the proper interpretation and application of the FOI ACT as well as promote compliance. Editing by Jonathan Browne
